MEMORANDUM - NEW W-4 FORM, EMPLOYEE’S WITHHOLDING CERTIFICATE

Sep 19, 2026

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Memorandum instructs all employees on the IRS redesign of Form W-4, Employee’s Withholding Certificate, effective January 1, 2020. It explains that the update reflects changes from the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, including the elimination of personal exemptions and the standard deduction increase. Guidance emphasizes ensuring correct federal tax withholding via a Tax Withholding Estimator and clarifies which employees must complete new steps and when to adjust withholding for multiple jobs, other income, credits, and deductions.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryLetters

FormatPDF

Pages2

Reading Time1 min

AccessFree to download

Overview of the new W-4

When it takes effect and why it changed

Who needs to submit a new W-4

Current employees and optional updates

How to complete the redesigned W-4

Required steps and optional steps

IRS Q&A on key updates

Redesign rationale, withholding allowances, and filing scenarios

MEMORANDUM To: ALL EMPLOYEES From: SHARON BOYD, DIRECTOR OF HUMAN RESOURCES Date: JANUARY 1, 2020 Re: NEW W-4 FORM, EMPLOYEE’S WITHHOLDING CERTIFICATE The IRS has issued a new form W-4, Employee's Withholding Certificate, to be used beginning Jan. 1, 2020. This change stems from the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, which went into effect in 2018 and eliminated personal exemptions and doubled the standard deduction when filing personal taxes. This new form and accompanying Tax Withholding Estimator are meant to ensure you have the proper amount of federal tax withheld from your paycheck. (The new W-4 form can be found on our website.) Current employees with a valid form W-4 on file with human resources are not required to complete a new form; however, you may do so if you choose. If you do not submit a new form, withholding will continue based on your previously submitted form, which may not beas accurate as using the new form. You may want to consider completing a new form W-4 if you want to more accurately account for your annual income. A new form W-4 is encouraged, for example, if you work more than one job, if your spouse also works and you file your taxes jointly, if you claim the child tax credit or other tax credit, or if you have high incomes and more complex tax returns. When completing a new form W-4, you must complete steps 1 and 5. Steps 2, 3 and 4 are optional, but can be helpful in ensuring your tax withholding more closely matches your tax obligations. In addition, the IRS provides a Tax Withholding Estimator ([https://www.irs.gov/individuals/tax-withholding-estimator](https://www.irs.gov/individuals/tax-withholding-estimator)) to help ensure maximum accuracy. To use the IRS Tax Withholding Estimator, you will need to have your latest pay statement handy, as you will be asked to enter the federal income tax withheld from your last paycheck and the total federal income tax withheld to date. The IRS provides the following questions and answers regarding the new W-4 that you may find helpful: Q. Why redesign Form W-4? A. The new design reduces the form's complexity and increases the transparency and accuracy of the withholding system. While it uses the same underlying information as the old design, it replaces complicated worksheets with more straightforward questions that make accurate withholding easier for employees. Q. What happened to withholding allowances? A. Allowances are no longer used for the redesigned Form W-4. This change is meant to increase transparency, simplicity, and accuracy of the form. In the past, the value of a withholding allowance was tied to the amount of the personal exemption. Due to changes in law, currently you cannot claim personal exemptions or dependency exemptions. Q. Are all employees required to furnish a new Form W-4? A. No. Employees who have furnished Form W-4 in any year before 2020 are not required to furnish a new form merely because of the redesign. Employers will continue to compute withholding based on the information from the employee's most recently furnished Form W-4. Q. What happens if I only fill out Step 1 and then sign the form? A. Your withholding will be computed based on your filing status's standard deduction and tax rates, with no other adjustments. Q. When should I increase my withholding? A. You should generally increase your withholding if: 􀀁 you hold more than one job at a time or you and your spouse both have jobs (Step 2) or 􀀁 you have income from sources other than jobs or self-employment that is not subject to withholding (Step 4(a)) . If you do not make adjustments to your withholding for these situations, you will very likely owe additional tax when filing your tax return, and you may owe penalties. For income from sources other than jobs, you can pay estimated tax instead of having extra withholding. Q. When should I decrease my withholding? A. You should generally decrease your withholding if: 􀀁 you are e

FAQs

When does the redesigned W-4 begin to be used?

The redesigned Form W-4 is to be used beginning January 1, 2020.

Do current employees with a valid W-4 on file have to complete a new one?

Current employees are not required to complete a new form if they already have a valid W-4 on file, though they may choose to update it.

What should an employee do if they hold more than one job or their spouse also works?

Generally increase withholding for multiple jobs (Step 2) to avoid owing additional tax and potentially penalties, since only one standard deduction applies per tax return.

Sep 19, 2026

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